“And it came to pass in the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,”
Twelfth. He counts from the captivity of Jechonias, as Sedecias reigned only eleven years. (Worthington)
“Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say unto him, Thou art like a young lion of the nations, and thou art as a whale in the seas: and thou camest forth with thy rivers, and troubledst the waters with thy feet, and fouledst their rivers. whale: or, dragon”
Dragon, or crocodile; two of the most terrible creatures. — With the horn is not expressed in Hebrew and the crocodile has nothing like a horn. It has four feet, with which it makes the water muddy. (Calmet)
“Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will therefore spread out my net over thee with a company of many people; and they shall bring thee up in my net.”
Net. Septuagint, “hook,” chap. xxix. 4. (Calmet) — Some take the crocodile with a net, ver. 3. (Elian. Hist. x. 21.)
“And I will lay thy flesh upon the mountains, and fill the valleys with thy height.”
Corruption. Septuagint, “blood.” But romuth (Haydock) means rather “worms.” (Syriac) (Calmet)
“And when I shall put thee out, I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give her light. put: or, extinguish thee”
Out, like a candle, by death; extinctus. (Haydock) — The glory of Egypt was so great, that at its fall the light of heaven seemed diminished. (Worthington) — Great desolation is thus intimated. — When, &c., is not in some Latin copies, nor in Hebrew, &c. (Calmet)
“I will also vex the hearts of many people, when I shall bring thy destruction among the nations, into the countries which thou hast not known. vex: Heb. provoke to anger, or, grief”
Anger, as they will not know why I have treated thee so severely: or rather, they shall be afraid for themselves, ver. 10. (Calmet)
“By the swords of the mighty will I cause thy multitude to fall, the terrible of the nations, all of them: and they shall spoil the pomp of Egypt, and all the multitude thereof shall be destroyed.”
Invincible, when they wield God’s sword. Cyrus easily conquered them. (Haydock) — Hebrew, “strong,.” Septuagint, “pestiferous.”
“Then will I make their waters deep, and cause their rivers to run like oil, saith the Lord GOD.”
Oil. It is very transparent. It seems the Nile was rendered muddy by cattle, &c.
“When I shall make the land of Egypt desolate, and the country shall be destitute of that whereof it was full, when I shall smite all them that dwell therein, then shall they know that I am the LORD. destitute: Heb. desolate from the fulness thereof”
Fulness, or all of it shall be desolate.
“It came to pass also in the twelfth year, in the fifteenth day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,”
Month: probably the twelfth, ver. 1.
“Son of man, wail for the multitude of Egypt, and cast them down, even her, and the daughters of the famous nations, unto the nether parts of the earth, with them that go down into the pit.”
Down: announce this catastrophe. (Calmet) — Apries was slain by order of Amasis. (Diodorus 1.) (Jeremias xliv. 30.)
“The strong among the mighty shall speak to him out of the midst of hell with them that help him: they are gone down, they lie uncircumcised, slain by the sword.”
Most. Septuagint, “giants shall say to thee: Remain in the depth of the pit. Whom dost thou excel? descend,” &c. (Haydock) — They vary much in this chapter from the Hebrew. (St. Jerome) — Helpers; Lybians, &c., chap. xxx. 5. These shall come to compliment the king. (Calmet) — After a battle, those of the same nation were buried together, ver. 22. (Theodoret) — The Egyptians had tombs like houses, in which there were separate holes or apartments (Calmet) as in large vaults. (Haydock)
“There is Elam and all her multitude round about her grave, all of them slain, fallen by the sword, which are gone down uncircumcised into the nether parts of the earth, which caused their terror in the land of the living; yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit.”
Shame. They are buried without any distinction.
“And they shall not lie with the mighty that are fallen of the uncircumcised, which are gone down to hell with their weapons of war: and they have laid their swords under their heads, but their iniquities shall be upon their bones, though they were the terror of the mighty in the land of the living. with their: Heb. with weapons of their war”
Not. Some copies of Septuagint omit the negation. Others render the Hebrew, “Have they not slept?” &c. These nations were deprived of military honours, dying like cowards; and therefore their swords were not placed with them in the grave. (Calmet) — It was customary to inter such things as the deceased had liked the most. (Serv. in Virgil’s Æneid x. Arma quibus lætatus habe tua, &c. Simon (1 Machabees xiii. 29.) placed arms and representations of ships on the pillars at Modin, in honour of his kindred. If Elam, &c., had not received such distinction, why should the Egyptian repine? Were they any better? (Calmet) — The country and king of the Elamites, Assyrians, and other infidels, shall be destroyed. (Worthington)
“Yea, thou shalt be broken in the midst of the uncircumcised, and shalt lie with them that are slain with the sword.”
Midst. This threat would make great impression on the Egyptians, who were particularly solicitous to be buried with their fathers.
“There is Edom, her kings, and all her princes, which with their might are laid by them that were slain by the sword: they shall lie with the uncircumcised, and with them that go down to the pit. laid: Heb. given, or, put”
Edom. Septuagint add, “and all the Assyrian princes.” Some copies omit Edom. (Haydock) — This nation had laid aside circumcision, which Hircan forced them to resume. They had been present at the siege of Jerusalem, chap. xxxv. (Calmet)
“There be the princes of the north, all of them, and all the Zidonians, which are gone down with the slain; with their terror they are ashamed of their might; and they lie uncircumcised with them that be slain by the sword, and bear their shame with them that go down to the pit.”
Hunters of men, like Nemrod, the first king of Assyria. (Haydock)
“For I have caused my terror in the land of the living: and he shall be laid in the midst of the uncircumcised with them that are slain with the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord GOD.”
My. Hebrew, Septuagint, “his,” (Calmet) alluding to the ravages of Nechao; (Grotius) though the Hebrew may also signify my, as the Jews read Egypt, and Palestine, the land of the living, were filled with terror. After the latter had been chastised, Pharao might dread (Calmet) a worse fate; (Haydock) and the multitudes slain before him, might afford him some (Calmet) wretched consolation. (Haydock) — It is evident that these nations believed the existence of separate spirits, and had not given in to the errors of the Sadducees, or of the Metempsychosis. (Calmet)